


Five Christmases Kent spent in Las Vegas (and One He Didn’t)

by WhenSheReads



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: M/M, Minor Eric Bittle/Jack Zimmermann
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-17
Updated: 2017-12-16
Packaged: 2019-02-15 20:57:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 2,287
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13039260
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhenSheReads/pseuds/WhenSheReads
Summary: For the prompt: I love love love Troyson (Kent/Swoops) and would love to read about anything to do with them. The idea of Christmas in Vegas, and maybe away from their respective families, has a lot of potential in my mind. If you do do this one, please no Jack bashing, if he's mentioned at all.





	1. The Rookie

**Author's Note:**

  * For [madameofmusic](https://archiveofourown.org/users/madameofmusic/gifts).



> From this prompt: 
> 
> I love love love Troyson (Kent/Swoops) and would love to read about anything to do with them. The idea of Christmas in Vegas, and maybe away from their respective families, has a lot of potential in my mind. If you do do this one, please no Jack bashing, if he's mentioned at all.
> 
> Honestly, I offered to write Bob Zimmerman and wasn’t quite sure what to do with Kent at first, but I do find him interesting. This was a fun challenge, so thanks! 
> 
> I kind of needed to build a Swoops for my version of Kent, so I ended up needing a bit more time with them, hence the 5+1.

Kent was not going back to New York this Christmas. He couldn’t remember the last time he had spent the holiday with his actual family. If he was honest, the way he marked time was Before Jack, During Jack, and After Jack. 

He had not been home since Before Jack.

During Jack, there was a mish-mash of Jewish and Christian traditions—all sorts of decorations and badly sung holiday songs as the Zimmerparents tried to create holiday cheer. He had always looked forward to it. He hoped that Jack was able to enjoy it again.

After Jack, After Draft, he had been living in the garage apartment of Mike Ryan, one of the assistant captains. Ryers and his wife Denise had two little kids, a boy and a girl, who liked it when he had dinner with them and played basketball outside or makeshift hockey in the basement. They had hung a stocking for him on the mantle, clued him into what an Elf on the Shelf was, and let him help bake red and green Snickerdoodles for the Christmas cookie table at the church play. 

He was a little lonely, but not alone. Maybe Vegas is a good thing.


	2. The Best Present Ever

Kent only stayed with the Ryans for a year, though he promised the kidlets that he would come over for dinner and hang out with them. Before every roadie he stopped by to get a meal and some healthy meals he could store in his freezer that Denise insisted upon making for him. 

For Christmas, he had made sure to get Ryers and Denise a gift card to an expensive restaurant and promised to babysit the Tessa and Jake. He got the kids sports gear and things to build that he could ask them to bring out when he babysat. He even bought an ugly sweater to wear to make them laugh at him.

And they totally laughed at him. It was awesome.  
When the kiddos brought him his stocking to open, he thought it was a joke. Little crinkly balls, catnip mice, wands of ribbon…cat toys.

And then Denise came in, holding a fancy cat bed with a fluffy white kitten on it. It was asleep in a ball. The kids were bouncing with excitement next to him. Ryers started to explain:

“Guys always compare you to a cat because you’re quick. The kids agreed—they said you like to stretch out, take naps, Figured we should get you an alter ego. Kit Purrson.”

“I can’t name my cat after myself.”

“Kids named it.”

“They can call it that.”

“Her.”

“You think I’m a girl?”

“Is there something wrong with being a girl?” Tessa asked. Ryers raised his eyebrow.

Kent shook his head. “Nope. Course not, little one.”

“She’s the little one,” Jake insisted.

He looks at the ball of fluff in his arms, which had turned her head into the crook of his elbow and he started to feel a rumble.

“Purrs,” he said softly, stroking her head.

“No, Kit Purrson!” Tessa cried.

Kent smiled.


	3. The Call-Up

They called up Jeff Troy after Anderson went down. Troy was a little younger, but not by much. Still, Kent remembered how he needed someone to ground him when he first came up. He was the captain now—it was his responsibility to look out for the rookies, even if he felt like he was way too young to be the responsible one.

He’d failed at that before. He wouldn’t fail at it again.

Most of the guys were playing soccer before games to wind down (or up), but they found Jeff shooting a basketball into a trash can and immediately christened him Swoops. He had started to play with the rest of the guys, but they brought out a trash can for him to try and kick the ball into. Kent adjusted his hat and waited for the game to end.

“Swoops!”

“Hey Parse.”

“Tired of the hotel yet?”

Swoops shrugged. “I mean, no one’s said anything yet, about the call-up being more permanent. Figure that it’s good enough.”

“You can crash at my pad if you don’t disturb my princess.”

“Purrs?” His eyebrows went up. “Never. I follow her on Instagram. She might help me get famous. Have to stay on her good side.”

“Famous?”

“Dude, like everyone and their mom follows your cat’s Instagram.”

“So?”

“So if I want to really be a part of this team and raise my profile, getting to know your cat is definitely a step in the right direction.”

“What about me, kid?” 

“I think we’re the same age.”

“I have 13 months on you.”

“Ah, you can count. Cool cat, counting abilities…what else will I learn if I take you up on this offer?”

“Are you seriously still chirping me? Yes or no.”

He nodded. “It would be nice, Parse. I really appreciate it.”

Swoops packed up his stuff after the game that night and had settled into the guest room by the weekend. Purrs quickly gave him her seal of approval—walking across whatever he was reading and settling herself in his line of sight—especially after he dropped a piece of chicken. 

Kent had to admit that it was nice to have someone to watch _Happy Endings_ with, and even nicer when Swoops made an off-hand comment about how he wished Grant was real and living in Las Vegas.

He had to wonder. He wouldn’t hope.

On Christmas, they called their families, worked out, exchanged Christmas gifts (cat toys and Britney tickets for Kent, passes to Kent’s suite and restaurant reservations for Swoops’s family when they came down in February) and ate a nutritionist-approved (re: boring) meal while watching and critiquing the “new classics”— _Elf_ and _The Holiday_ ? Solid additions to canon. _Four Christmases_ and live-action _How the Grinch Stole Christmas_ ? Hard fail. 

Swoops puts on the final film, _Love Actually_ , and settled down next to Kent on the couch. He fell asleep pretty quickly, Purrs on his lap and his head resting on Kent’s shoulder.

If Kent had told the truth at Christmas, as the movie suggested, he would have admitted he might have a (definitely had a) crush on Swoops.


	4. In and Out, Away and Back

Swoops did not get sent back down to the AHL the rest of the year. Kent is proud to see him gain confidence, and completely supports the coaches’ decision to put them on the same line. 

They seem to be as in sync in the house as well—getting up and going running together, making meals together, deciding what to watch on TV together…

…but they are not together. 

Kent thinks Swoops might have dropped a hint or two—the comment about Grant in _Happy Endings_ , the comment about TJ in _Political Animals_ , the comment about Holt in _Brooklyn Nine-Nine_. Knowing that Swoops is supportive of and admires gay television characters does not mean that Swoops is gay. 

And it isn’t like Parse has given him any reason to realize that Kent agrees with him, because his response is typically “huh.” Parse is a chill dude. It is Kent who is hopelessly in love with Swoops. 

After the season is over (second round), Swoops thanks Kent for everything, gives Purrs some extra cuddles, and moves to an apartment complex about five minutes away.

Purrs misses the extra chicken. Kent misses everything, at first.

But Swoops still visits a lot. He is still there for the runs in the morning, and to make breakfast afterward. He still sneaks Purrs a taste of whatever he is eating. 

And now Swoops is coming over for Christmas. Kent decides to really decorate for the first time. He gets a really nice pre-lit, pre-decorated tree—the people at Target will let you buy an entire display for the right place. He is so excited that he throws some other stuff in the cart as he heads to customer service to pay. When he gets back, he realizes that one of the things he has bought is a ball of fake mistletoe. 

Well played, past Kent. 

Gathering up his courage, he puts up mistletoe between the kitchen and the living room.

Then Kent takes down the mistletoe, and hides the mistletoe.

Swoops arrives with “amazing, old-school classic films that put all modern holiday flicks to absolute shame.” He and Kent make dinner, and start with _Shop Around the Corner_. 

They are in their usual places on the couch, which Kent thinks of as “so close yet so far.” Purrs, who has been largely quiet since she got a tiny piece of turkey, hops on to the back of the couch with what Kent now realizes was poorly hidden mistletoe in her mouth. 

“What the…Purrs, where did you get that?”

“Jesus, that’s not real, is it?”

“No, looks like fake stuff.”

“That’s good—real mistletoe is poisonous. Also, a little weird that you aren’t sure what you bought.”

“What makes you think I bought it?”

Swoops raises an eyebrow, and begins to pry the mistletoe away from Purrs. 

“Where else would the lady of the house get access to mistletoe?”

“She is really smart—maybe she went through a vent…”

“Outside, and then into a neighbor’s house somehow? Kent…”

“Jeff, I’m…”

“Kent, I’m holding this mistletoe over our heads. That means, if you believe all these cheesy movies we watch, that we should kiss.” He takes Kent’s hand in his, loosely stroking the back of the hand with his thumb. “Can I kiss you?”

Kent nods, and leans in.


	5. Home

Time passes.

Swoops gets the A. The Aces win another cup. Swoops spends less time at his apartment and more time spoiling Purrs. They don’t win another cup.

The Falconers win two in a row and Jack Zimmerman celebrates the second by kissing his secret husband on the ice.

Kent freezes, Swoops hovers, and Kent ends up telling Swoops the entire Parse and Zimms saga. The next day they head to the PR office, declaring their relationship and asking PR how they would like to handle it.

The head of PR does not drop her coffee on the ground when they walk in holding hands, even though it is a near thing. She quickly pledges the support of the organization, but suggests that maybe they need to come out to their teammates first while they work on crafting a response.

Swoops and Kent decide to move in together for good, and celebrate by hosting a barbeque in their backyard. There are pictures of Swoops’s family and a display with both their NHL accomplishments, and they refer to each other as “babe” and splay a hand on a back or brush their fingers over an arm. 

It’s their new rookie Medved who officially breaks the ice by saying “you two like to sex each other, yes? That what this means?”

Kent snorts. Swoops smiles. “Yeah, Vedder. But like, we’ve been together for years and it’s not been a problem, so let’s not make it a thing?”

PR does make it a bit of a thing when they have their first public practice of the year and all the guys use rainbow tape and tweet support for You Can Play. When Kent does press later and they start asking if they are supporting Zimbits, he shrugs and says “yeah, and Troyson. Those guys are the best.” He skates away while Swoops falls down laughing and gets roped into answering the other questions.

Now that they are an official couple with both their names on the deed to the house, Swoops asks if Kent would be up to hosting some of his (admittedly large) family for the holidays. 

Kent sells his soul to Target for more decorations, and the house is magnificent by the time the Troys arrive in town. All the lights are perfectly timed to turn on when it is dusk, they added another tree for the kids to decorate if they wanted, and he even found a bell collar for Purrs that she did not loathe. 

And lucky for tradition, movie watching runs in the family.


	6. Family

After the headphones were passed out, all that was left to do was wait for the plane to take off. Kent shuffled the bundle in his lap and tapped Swoops on the shoulder.  
“I can’t believe we’ve never gone to Minnesota for Christmas before. I mean, I know we haven’t, it’s just…”

“Well, we used to have games so close to the holiday that it didn’t make sense to travel extra, and then you had games last season while I tended to the nugget.”

“She is not a nugget.”

“Not literally. But she is distinctly nugget-sized.”

“I’m 100 percent certain that there are no actual nuggets that are the same size as our 18-month-old daughter.” 

“I could ask Bitty to make one.”

The bundle squirms, and stuffed cat that looks suspiciously like (the dearly departed) Purrs smacks Kent in the face. “No, Dwoops. Don’t.”

“You’re really calling to call me that?”

“That’s what Lila calls you, so yes.”

“It’s your fault for calling me Daddy Swoops.”

Kent shakes his head, adjusting the hat on Lila’s head.

“Technically, it’s your fault for contributing the genetic material that created our little miracle in the first place.”

Swoops grins.

“She is kind of a miracle, isn’t she?”

“I think this whole thing is kind of a miracle. I coming to Vegas for the first time, hanging with their family…” Kent trails off, his eyes (grey-blue like the sky right now) glancing up. “I never thought I would get to have this.”

Swoops brushes a hand through his hair and gives him a chaste kiss on the cheek.

“Merry Christmas, babe. Let’s see if there are any good in-flight movies.”


End file.
